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I Am Nobody's Prime Minister

Until six years ago, poet Dean Atta wanted to be prime minister. But then he met the main political leaders and became uninterested in politics. Did this election change his mind?

"Every one of you has a voice to speak or not, it is your choice, but silence is not golden, silence is the truth stolen, and stealing of the truth, is exactly what them do to the youth." From the poem "Revolution" by Dean Atta.

Young voters are failing to pick up the voting habit. Many people think the youth don't care - they are seen as lazy, not interested. In the lead up to May's general election, Dean talked to politicians and to the young voters who think they don't have a role to play.

What will entice this generation into politics? Do the elected have an answer? What do the political parties have to say to encourage Dean to stay politically engaged?

Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith gives Dean some hope, Labour's David Lammy believes this generation has to stay engaged, while Green MP Caroline Lucas has appeal to the young. But it's in East Glasgow, at the office of SNP candidate Natalie McGarry, where the campaign seems at its most lively and dynamic.

Dean grew up in Wembley but he's not into football. "I'd go to the station and see floods of fans in the streets." For him, football felt like a bizarre cult, something he was not part of. For many, political parties are the same, so no one joins them - and because no one joins them, they look ever more like bizarre cults.

Produced by Barney Rowntree
A Reduced Listening production for 麻豆约拍 Radio 4.

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30 minutes

Last on

Mon 29 Jun 2015 20:00

Broadcasts

  • Sun 7 Jun 2015 13:30
  • Mon 29 Jun 2015 20:00